As music festivals season gears up and lineup announcements come in batches, Omaha’s biggest one prepares to drop its own.

Maha Music Festival will reveal the lineup for its ninth-annual event at Reverb Lounge on Thursday, March 30. The free reception runs 7-10 p.m. with the official reveal video going live at 8 p.m.

The festival also announced that tickets for the Saturday, Aug 19 concert go on-sale this Friday, March 17 at 10 a.m. General admission tickets will be $55 while VIP packages run $185. Find them at Maha’s website here.

In recent years, Maha has made its lineup reveal an annual spectacle. That was no more true in any year than 2015, when overwhelming fan support for Modest Mouse seemed to will them into the headlining spot. The list of recent headliners includes Passion Pit and Death Cab For Cutie.

Unmanned announces new LP ‘Favorites,’ shares new track

Less than a year removed from its debut album, Lincoln four piece rock band Unmanned is back with the sophomore follow-up.

The band formerly known as Powers has announced it will release Favorites on Friday, April 7 at 1867 Bar. Recorded by Evan Anderson and Kelly Houchen in the band’s practice space, it will be available via cassette and download.

Unmanned has also shared the album’s first new track, “15 of 30,” picking up right where last year’s Night Friends left off. Houchen’s and Dave Arredondo’s weaving guitars lead the way, bolstered by Jason Morris’ driving bass and Jordan Elfers’ busy, powerful drumming.

Hear Nebraska, Virgin Mary Pistol Grip on Early Afternoon Tonight

Late-night podcast Early Afternoon Tonight double-dips into the music scene for its latest episode.

Hear Nebraska executive Andrew Norman and Virgin Mary Pistol Grip vocalist Jales Hupke joined host Karl Houser for an hour-long episode. They play “ripped from the headlines” with the latest news; Norman chats about Hear Nebraska’s mission; and Hupke talks about his rock band’s resume and his adventures in teaching

Listen to episode 22 — NSFW, as always — below:

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Photo coverage: Closeness, High Up, BareBear at O’Leaver’s

Kicking off our massive weekend photo spread, HN contributor Andy Lachance went to O’Leaver’s Friday night for the Closeness EP release party. The duo comprising Todd and Orenda Fink’s debut album Personality Therapy is out now via Graveface Records. Indie soul band High Up also performed in what served as a kickoff show for both acts’ trips to SXSW. New band BareBear rounded out the bill.

See Lachance’s photos below:

Closeness

High Up

BareBear

HN multimedia intern Lauren Farris caught the Reverb Lounge show Friday featuring Plack Blague, Cult Play and Solid Goldberg. In current events, Plack Blague is winding up to a new album, Night Trax, due this Spring. Cult Play was one of a handful of artists who remixed a song from Omaha hip-hop duo Third Eye Merchants’ debut EP Visions; the re-released tracks can be found here.

See Farris’ photos below:

Plack Blague

Cult Play

Solid Goldberg

HN photo contributor Connor Lepert caught the Saturday night show at Vega, where Minneapolis bands Marah In The Mainsail and Good Morning Bedlam stopped on their way down to SXSW. The former is a frequent Lincoln visitor, most recently in town this past October for Lincoln Calling. Local acts Jack Hotel and blét opened in support.

See Lepert’s photos below:

Marah In The Mainsail

Jack Hotel

Good Morning Bedlam

Blét

Photos by Connor Lepert

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Photo coverage: Sam Locke Ward, Simon Joyner, L Eugene Group at Almost Music

Lachance was out again Saturday night, stopping at Almost Music for Iowa City songwriter Sam Locke Ward, Simon Joyner and a stripped-back version of the Ghosts and L Eugene Group. See the photos below:

Sam Locke Ward

Simon Joyner

L Eugene Group

Photos by Andy Lachance

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Concert Round-Up

Tonight, Cleveland punk rock quartet Signals Midwest comes to O’Leaver’s for a set with local act Bokr Tov. Frontman Max Stern chatted with See Through Dresses’ Sara Bertuldo about keeping a band together, making its new record At This Age with intention and the story of an interstate trek across Nebraska; read the interview here. 8 p.m. show, $7, all-ages, RSVP here.

Find a fuller listing of shows tonight and for the rest of the week at our statewide calendar here. Have a news tip, story idea or new music to share? Email us at news@hearnebraska.org.

Andrew Stellmon is Hear Nebraska's managing editor. Reach him with news tips and story ideas at news@hearnebraska.org.